Anastasia Did What Frozen Did For Female Empowerment, But 15 Years Earlier

Anastasia is the best animated film in the history of animated films. Sorry Disney, but this one stole my heart long before Frozen ever did. 

It has so much going for it. 

First of all, it’s educational. Okay, I use that term loosely because it’s technically based on speculation and Russian legend but it is rooted in some kind of history: 

Anastasia follows the ‘story’ of Grand Duchess Anastasia Nikolaevna of Russia. Legend has it that she escaped the execution of her family in 1918 and lived a life in hiding. 

The 1997 20th Century Fox film tells the story of an eighteen-year-old amnesiac orphan named Anya who dreams of the family she never knew. In searching for answers about her past she ends up working with con men who wish to take advantage of her likeness to the Grand Duchess; only to find out that she is in fact Anastasia. 

As a history nerd all of this^ is a big yes from me. But also, it’s just a cool storyline. What little girl doesn’t dream of being a secret princess? 

The film also has elements of fantasy which keep it magical and also make it terrifying. Rasputin gave me more nightmares than The Lion King’s Scar ever has. 

Not to mention the music is incredible (‘Journey To The Past’ makes me want to look for my non-existent long lost family) and the cast is amazing: Meg Ryyan, John Cusack, Kelsey Grammer and Christopher Lloyd all feature. 

But the most important thing about Anastasia isn’t the storyline, or the music, or the cast: it’s the main character herself. Anya is strong headed and strong willed and doesn’t back down. 

She doesn’t develop into a strong independent woman, she is one from the very start of the film and maintains her sense of self the whole way through. 

However, she’s also a little naive which makes her all the more likeable: she’s brave but definitely doesn’t know everything about everything.

For example, when Anya first meets conmen Dimitri and Vlad she doesn’t know about their ruse. She agrees to go with them because she genuinely believes they’re going to help her find out more about her past. 

Like any good animated film, there’s also a romance story. Dimitri plays an important role in Anya’s emotional development: he helps break down her walls and encourages her trust more. But he does not save her – she is not a damsel – Anya saves herself. 

Literally. 

Dimitri gets knocked out half way through the epic battle scene with Rasputin, leaving Anya to end things.  

I still get chills every time I hear her say “dasvidaniya” with such conviction. It means “goodbye” in Russian. But, for Anya, it represents a lot more: in that moment, she lets go of her past and finally moves on. 

Anastasia broke the mould of helpless fairytale princesses and proved that women could be their own champion. It did was Frozen did for female empowerment but 15 years earlier. 

Just like Elsa refused to be confined by her society, Anya refused to let her orphaned past define her. Just like Anna embarked on a quest to save her sister, Anya fearlessly travelled across the world to find her own answers. All three females share the same tenacity and strength of will, and all of them back themselves.

And yet, where Frozen has become a pop-culture phenomenon, Anastasia mostly flies under the radar. 

Maybe it’s because it’s not a Disney film – a Russian princess is never going to be as exciting as Cinderella or Snow White. 

Or maybe it’s because Anastasia was Fox’s first animated film. In the years since, Fox has released huge successes like Casper and Ice Age which have overshadowed their earlier movies. 

Or maybe it’s just because 1990s society wasn’t ready for a hero like Anastasia. 

I’ll never understand why the film is so often forgotten. But it’s definitely time Anastasia got the recognition it deserves.